220 staff members at Rockstar North have penned a joint letter demanding their former colleagues be reinstated immediately.
220 letters signed by staff members at Rockstar, the studio behind the Grand Theft Auto series, were delivered to management at the company last week, demanding that the 31 employees fired are immediately reinstated
The employees, all of whom were members of the IWGB Union, believe they were fired illegally for unionising, which the IWGB has described as “the most ruthless act of union busting in the history of the games industry”
Fired Rockstar employees, supporters, and current staff gathered outside the company’s offices on 108 Holyrood Road every day last week, culminating in protests there and outside Take Two Interactive’s London offices on Thursday 6 November
Further protests are planned to take place in London and Paris this Friday 14 November, and in Edinburgh on Tuesday 18 November
Rockstar have claimed in a public statement that the 31 members of staff were fired for leaking information in public channels, something that the IWGB has refuted, saying that workers only communicated in private and legally-protected trade union channels.
But on the other side the IWGB on November 12th issued claims against Rockstar Games for unfairly dismissing staff for union activity and blacklisting its members.
Alex Marshall, IWGB President stated:
“We are confident that what we’ve seen here is plain and simple union busting, and we will mount a full legal defence with our expert group of caseworkers, legal officers and barristers. Employers like Rockstar would do well to understand that private spaces such as trade union Discord servers have protections, and that their company’s contractual clauses do not supersede UK law. This case stands as a warning to any employer in the games industry and beyond who thinks they are able to act with impunity against organised workers – we will not be intimidated.”
One of the staff fired at Rockstar last week stated:
“It’s heartwarming to see so many of our colleagues supporting us and holding management to account – during a period where Rockstar want us to feel scared, my brave former colleagues are marching straight up to our boss’s door and demanding our voices are heard and not backing down. It’s clear to everyone close to this situation that this is a blatant, unapologetic act of vicious union busting. Rockstar employs so many talented game developers, all of whom are crucial to making the games we put out.”
Fred Carter, an IWGB organiser, stated:
“By deciding to fire more than 30 union members, Rockstar have carried out an Amazon-style act of union-busting unprecedented in the games industry. This is a company that benefits from more than £440 million in UK tax relief, while displaying a callous and blatant disregard for both the livelihood of workers and the letter of the law.”
The Game Workers branch of the IWGB is the largest game worker union in the UK. They’re a worker-led, democratic trade union building worker power to improve our lives both at work and in their communities.
Source: IWGB Game Workers, IWGB
